عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
World

Iran Orders Material from China to Produce 800 Ballistic Missiles

A satellite image shows the smoke rising from the explosion at the Shahid Rajaee port, Bandar Abbas, Iran April 27, 2025. Maxar Technologies/Handout via REUTERS
A satellite image shows the smoke rising from the explosion at the Shahid Rajaee port, Bandar Abbas, Iran April 27, 2025. Maxar Technologies/Handout via REUTERS
TT
TT

Iran Orders Material from China to Produce 800 Ballistic Missiles

A satellite image shows the smoke rising from the explosion at the Shahid Rajaee port, Bandar Abbas, Iran April 27, 2025. Maxar Technologies/Handout via REUTERS
A satellite image shows the smoke rising from the explosion at the Shahid Rajaee port, Bandar Abbas, Iran April 27, 2025. Maxar Technologies/Handout via REUTERS

Iran has ordered thousands of tons of ballistic-missile ingredients from China, people familiar with the transaction told The Wall Street Journal, seeking to rebuild its military prowess as it discusses the future of its nuclear program with the US.

The report, which cited people familiar with the transaction, said Tehran had ordered enough ammonium perchlorate to potentially manufacture up to 800 missiles. It said the material is used to produce solid-fuel missiles.

“Shipments of ammonium perchlorate are expected to reach Iran in coming months and could fuel hundreds of ballistic missiles,” the people said. Some of the material would likely be sent to militias in the region aligned with Iran, including Houthis in Yemen.

According to the Journal, Iran’s drive to expand its missile stockpile and strengthen its regional proxies comes as it continues to enrich uranium to levels just below weapons grade and has refused to place limits on its missile development as part of nuclear negotiations.

President Donald Trump said he discussed the issue during a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin

“Time is running out on Iran's decision pertaining to nuclear weapons,” Trump wrote Wednesday in a social-media post.

Part of rebuilding Iran’s 'Axis of Resistance'

The shipment of ammonium perchlorate is part of Iran’s broader efforts to rebuild its so-called "Axis of Resistance" network.

The ammonium perchlorate was ordered by an Iranian entity called Pishgaman Tejarat Rafi Novin Co. from the Hong Kong-based Lion Commodities Holdings Ltd, the Journal reported.

China’s Foreign Ministry told the Journal that Beijing was unaware of a contract for such a shipment.

“The Chinese side has always exercised strict control over dual-use items in accordance with China’s export control laws and regulations and its international obligations,” said the spokesperson.

Iran has been looking for ways to rebuild its network of regional proxies, the so-called Axis of Resistance, after Israel struck Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza, and the Assad regime in Syria.

While US and Israeli strikes have damaged the Houthis' capabilities in Yemen, they continue to periodically launch missiles at Israel.

The Journal said that beyond supporting regional militias, Iran has also reportedly transferred ballistic missiles to Shiite militia groups in Iraq, which have previously targeted both US and Israeli forces in the region.

Earlier this year, Iranian ships docked in China to load over 1,000 tons of sodium perchlorate, a precursor for ammonium perchlorate.

The material was delivered to Iranian ports in mid-February and late March, according to shipping trackers. This quantity of sodium perchlorate is said to be enough to fuel around 260 short-range missiles.

The new order for ammonium perchlorate, which was placed months before President Trump’s proposed nuclear talks with Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, in early March, could supply Iran with enough material to produce approximately 800 missiles, one official estimated.

In response to Iran’s missile activities, the US Treasury Department sanctioned six individuals and six entities from both Iran and China on April 29 for their involvement in procuring ballistic missile propellant ingredients.

Two weeks later, the Treasury expanded these sanctions to include additional Chinese and Hong Kong entities. It added sodium perchlorate to its list of materials linked to Iran’s military, nuclear, and missile activities.

A State Department official said, “Chinese entities and individuals have provided support to Iran’s ballistic missile program, as well as to the Houthis’ missile and UAV production efforts, which is why we continue to identify and sanction them.”

Possible Threats

Fabian Hinz, a military expert at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, said “Iran likely needs material from abroad to avoid bottlenecks in its domestic production capabilities.”

However, storing such materials poses significant risks.

In April, a deadly explosion at Shahid Rajaee port, Iran’s key container hub, killed dozens. State media attributed the blast to the mishandling of explosive materials by a unit of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force.

An official confirmed that some of the previously imported sodium perchlorate was destroyed in the incident.

“These substances are a major fire and explosive hazard,” Hinz warned. “Iran’s defense industrial complex does not have a strong track record in ensuring safety standards.”

Most Viewed

 
 
World

US Reportedly Readies New Russia Sanctions if Putin Rejects Peace Deal

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with the Head of the Kabardino-Balkaria Republic, Kazbek Kokov (not pictured) at the Kremlin, in Moscow, Russia, 16 December 2025. EPA/MIKHAIL METZEL/SPUTNIK/KREMLIN POOL
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with the Head of the Kabardino-Balkaria Republic, Kazbek Kokov (not pictured) at the Kremlin, in Moscow, Russia, 16 December 2025. EPA/MIKHAIL METZEL/SPUTNIK/KREMLIN POOL
TT
TT

US Reportedly Readies New Russia Sanctions if Putin Rejects Peace Deal

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with the Head of the Kabardino-Balkaria Republic, Kazbek Kokov (not pictured) at the Kremlin, in Moscow, Russia, 16 December 2025. EPA/MIKHAIL METZEL/SPUTNIK/KREMLIN POOL
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with the Head of the Kabardino-Balkaria Republic, Kazbek Kokov (not pictured) at the Kremlin, in Moscow, Russia, 16 December 2025. EPA/MIKHAIL METZEL/SPUTNIK/KREMLIN POOL

The United States is preparing a further round of sanctions on Russia's energy sector to increase the pressure on Moscow should President Vladimir Putin reject a peace deal with Ukraine, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.

The US is considering options such as targeting vessels in Russia's so-called shadow fleet of tankers used to transport Moscow’s oil, and traders who facilitate the transactions, the report said.

Reuters could not immediately confirm the report. The White House and the US State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The new measures could be announced as early as this week, the report said.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent discussed the move when he met a group of European ambassadors earlier this week, the report added.

The Kremlin said on Wednesday that Russia's position on the deployment of any European troops to Ukraine under a possible future US-brokered peace deal was widely known but that the subject could be discussed.

The New York Times reported that under current US proposals, Ukraine would receive a security guarantee from the West and that a Europe-led military force would assist Ukraine by operating in Western Ukraine away from the front lines.

When asked about the reports, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that he did not want to give a running commentary to the media about the diplomacy, but that Russia's position - opposing any such deployment - was clear.

"Our position on foreign military contingents on the territory of Ukraine is well known," Peskov told reporters. "It is well-known, it is absolutely consistent and understandable. But again, this is a subject for discussion."

Peskov said that US special envoy Steve Witkoff was not expected to visit Moscow this week. Russia expects the US to inform Moscow about the results of the talks with Ukraine as soon as it is ready, Peskov said.

World

Taiwan Says Chinese Aircraft Carrier Sailed Through Taiwan Strait 

Chinese aircraft carrier Shandong sails in Pacific Ocean waters, about 300 kilometers (186 miles) south of Okinawa prefecture, Japan, April 5, 2023. (Reuters)
Chinese aircraft carrier Shandong sails in Pacific Ocean waters, about 300 kilometers (186 miles) south of Okinawa prefecture, Japan, April 5, 2023. (Reuters)
TT
TT

Taiwan Says Chinese Aircraft Carrier Sailed Through Taiwan Strait 

Chinese aircraft carrier Shandong sails in Pacific Ocean waters, about 300 kilometers (186 miles) south of Okinawa prefecture, Japan, April 5, 2023. (Reuters)
Chinese aircraft carrier Shandong sails in Pacific Ocean waters, about 300 kilometers (186 miles) south of Okinawa prefecture, Japan, April 5, 2023. (Reuters)

China's newest and most advanced aircraft carrier, the Fujian, sailed through the Taiwan Strait on Tuesday, Taiwan's defense ministry said, its first transit of the sensitive waterway since formally entering service last month.

Taiwan, which Beijing views as its territory, reports almost daily Chinese military activity around the island in what Taipei views as an ongoing pressure campaign against the democratically elected government.

In a statement on Wednesday, Taiwan's defense ministry said the Fujian had transited the strait the previous day and that Taiwan's forces had monitored it.

The ministry showed a grainy, black-and-white picture of the carrier with no aircraft on its deck. It did not say where the picture was taken and offered no other details.

China's defense ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

China says it alone has sovereignty over the strait, a major maritime artery for freight traffic. Taiwan and the United States say it is an international waterway.

In September, the carrier sailed through the Taiwan Strait and into the disputed South China Sea during trials.

The Fujian is China's third aircraft carrier, with a flat flight deck and electromagnetic catapults for take-offs that make it a potentially far more powerful naval weapon than China's first two Russian-designed carriers.

The Fujian will be able to carry significantly more and heavier armed jet fighters than the Liaoning and Shandong carriers, which are smaller and rely on ramps to launch aircraft.

With a flat deck and electromagnetic catapults to launch aircraft, the Fujian is expected to host a larger and wider range of planes than the other two carriers - including early-warning aircraft and, eventually, China's first carrier-capable stealth jet fighters.

China's President Xi Jinping attended its commissioning and flag presenting ceremony in the southern island province of Hainan last month and boarded the vessel for an inspection tour.

World

Alleged Bondi Gunman Charged with 15 Murders as Funerals of Victims Begin 

Police officers remove police tape from the scene of Sunday's shooting at Bondi Beach, in Sydney on December 17, 2025. (AFP)
Police officers remove police tape from the scene of Sunday's shooting at Bondi Beach, in Sydney on December 17, 2025. (AFP)
TT
TT

Alleged Bondi Gunman Charged with 15 Murders as Funerals of Victims Begin 

Police officers remove police tape from the scene of Sunday's shooting at Bondi Beach, in Sydney on December 17, 2025. (AFP)
Police officers remove police tape from the scene of Sunday's shooting at Bondi Beach, in Sydney on December 17, 2025. (AFP)

A man who allegedly opened fire on a Jewish Hanukkah celebration on Sydney's famed Bondi Beach has been charged with 59 offences, including murder and terrorism, police said on Wednesday.

The alleged father-and-son perpetrators opened fire on the celebration at Sydney's famed Bondi Beach on Sunday, killing 15 in an attack that shook the nation and intensified fears of rising antisemitism and violent extremism.

Funerals of the Jewish victims of the attack began on Wednesday, amid anger over how the gunmen - one of whom was briefly investigated for links to extremists - were allowed access to powerful firearms.

Sajid Akram, 50, was shot dead by police at the scene, while his 24-year-old son Naveed Akram emerged from a coma on Tuesday afternoon after also being shot by police.

New South Wales Police said on Wednesday that a man had been charged with 59 offences, including 15 counts of murder, 40 counts of wounding with attempt to murder, as well as a terror offence and other charges.

"Police will allege in court the man engaged in conduct that caused death, serious injury and endangered life to advance a religious cause and cause fear in the community," it said in a statement.

"Early indications point to a terrorist attack inspired by ISIS, a listed terrorist organization in Australia."

A court filing on Wednesday named Naveed Akram, who remains in a Sydney hospital under heavy police guard, as the man charged.

He will appear via video link before a local court on Monday morning.

The father and son had travelled to the southern Philippines, a region long plagued by militancy, weeks before the shooting that Australian police said appeared to be inspired by ISIS.

US President Donald Trump told a Hanukkah event at the White House late on Tuesday that he was thinking of the victims of the "horrific and antisemitic terrorist attack".

"We join in mourning all of those who were killed, and we're praying for the swift recovery of the wounded," he said.

STATE GOVERNMENT TO PASS GUN REFORMS

The leader of the Australian state of New South Wales said on Wednesday he will recall parliament next week to pass wide-ranging reforms of gun and protest laws, days after the country's deadliest mass shooting in three decades.

Chris Minns, the Premier of New South Wales state where the attack took place, told a news conference parliament would return on December 22 to hear "urgent" reforms, including capping the number of firearms allowed by a single person and making certain types of shotguns harder to access.

The state government will also look at reforms making it harder to hold large street protests after terror events, in order to prevent further tensions.

"We've got a monumental task in front of us. It's huge," he said.

"It's a huge responsibility to pull the community together. I think we need a summer of calm and togetherness, not division."

FUNERALS FOR JEWISH VICTIMS BEGIN

A funeral for Rabbi Eli Schlanger, an assistant rabbi at Chabad Bondi Synagogue and a father of five, was held on Wednesday. He was known for his work for Sydney’s Jewish community through Chabad, a global organization fostering Jewish identity and connection.

Schlanger would travel to prisons and meet with Jewish people living in Sydney's public housing communities, Jewish leader Alex Ryvchin said on Monday.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is facing criticism that his center-left government did not do enough to prevent the spread of antisemitism in Australia during the two-year Israel-Gaza war.

"We will work with the Jewish community, we want to stamp out and eradicate antisemitism from our society," Albanese told reporters.

The government and intelligence services are also under pressure to explain why Sajid Akram was allowed to legally acquire the high-powered rifles and shotguns used in the attack.

The government has already promised sweeping reforms to gun laws.

Naveed Akram, meanwhile, was briefly investigated by Australia's domestic intelligence agency in 2019 over alleged links to ISIS, but there was no evidence at the time he posed a threat, Albanese said.

MAN PRAISED AS HERO TO UNDERGO SURGERY

Albanese said Ahmed al-Ahmed, 43, the man who tackled one of the shooters to disarm his rifle and suffered gunshot wounds, was due to undergo surgery on Wednesday.

Al-Ahmed's uncle, Mohammed al-Ahmed in Syria, said his nephew left his hometown in Syria's northwest province of Idlib nearly 20 years ago to seek work in Australia.

"We learned through social media. I called his father and he told me that it was Ahmed. Ahmed is a hero, we're proud of him. Syria in general is proud of him," the uncle told Reuters.

The family of 22-year-old police officer Jack Hibbert, who was shot twice on Sunday and had been on the force for just four months, said in a statement on Wednesday he had lost vision in one eye and faced a "long and challenging recovery" ahead.

"In the face of a violent and tragic incident, he responded with courage, instinct, and selflessness, continuing to protect and help others whilst injured, until he was physically no longer able to," the family said.

New South Wales Premier Minns said 23 people were still in several Sydney hospitals.

HOLOCAUST SURVIVOR AMONG VICTIMS

Other shooting victims included a Holocaust survivor, a husband and wife who first approached the gunmen before they started firing, and a 10-year-old girl named Matilda, according to interviews, officials and media reports.

Matilda's father told a Bondi vigil on Tuesday night he did not want his daughter's legacy to be forgotten.

"We came here from Ukraine ... and I thought that Matilda is the most Australian name that can ever exist. So just remember the name, remember her," local media reported him as saying.

In Bondi on Wednesday, swimmers gathered on Sydney's most popular beach and held a minute's silence. A New Year's Eve party due to be held on the beach was cancelled by organizers.

"This week has obviously been very profound, and this morning, I definitely feel a sense of the community getting together, and a sense of everyone sitting together," Archie Kalaf, a 24-year-old Bondi man, told Reuters. "Everyone's grieving, everyone's understanding and processing it in their own way."